Privacy & Information Security Law Blog

Julie Brill and Edith Ramirez took their oaths of office on April 5 and 6, 2010, completing the Federal Trade Commission’s roster of five commissioners and facilitating the Commission’s new tougher stance on privacy.  As we previously reported, Ms. Brill and Ms. Ramirez were confirmed by the U.S. Senate on March 3, 2010.  There are now three Democrats and two Republicans on the Commission.

Last year, when the Commission was comprised of one Democrat, two Republicans, an independent and a vacant seat, FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz announced an aggressive agenda for the Commission, including a “privacy re-think.”  The new Democratic majority will make it easier to advance that agenda through recommendations to Congress, responses to market requests for greater self regulation and the approach taken with respect to enforcement cases.

Julie Brill brings twenty years of privacy enforcement experience as Assistant Attorney General for Consumer Protection and Antitrust for the State of Vermont and Deputy Attorney General for Consumer Protection and Antitrust for the State of North Carolina.  Edith Ramirez was a litigation partner at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan in Los Angeles.

Additional information is available on the Commissioners' page of the Federal Trade Commission’s website.